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The new small rear-drive Cadillac, the next CTS, the Chevrolet Camaro, future full-size pickups, and whatever other RWD models GM conjures up in the next few years will benefit from a $204-million investment in an eight-speed automatic transmission plant in Toledo, Ohio. Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson announced the investment and the eight-speed for longitudinal engine use recently, confirming that GM is catching up with the likes of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Lexus. Chrysler will have eight-speed transmissions soon, and Ford has announced a new FWD eight-speed automatic.

Figure on GM’s eight-speed to make its way into the new Alpha platform rear-drive cars, which start with the ATS-codename 2013 Cadillac 3 Series-fighter, the 2014 Cadillac CTS and the 2015 Chevy Camaro. The transmission could work in all but high-torque versions of GM’s pickups and sport/utilities, as well.

GM is the inventor of the mass-market fully automatic transmission, with varying gear counts through the years. A brief look at the history shows that what the new eight-speed needs more than anything is a cool, post-modern name. In the past there have been:

Hydramatic: four speeds, launched in 1940 Oldsmobiles. It was redesigned for the 1956 model year with a sprag clutch and a secondary fluid coupling, and discontinued after 1964.

Turbo-Hydramatic: three speeds, launching in high-torque V-8 powered models from all divisions in 1965. By the ’70s, it was GM’s mainstream automatic, and it evolved into a four-speed automatic. It is used in some GM models to this day.